Joe Byrne

Please find a copy of a Press Release on the Heritage Bill. It centres on the motion passed unanimously by Dublin City Council last Monday, an action that was made a reality in no small part by one of our IWAI Carrick on Shannon members.

The motion calls on “the Minister for Arts and Heritage to defer the introduction of the Heritage Bill 2016, in so far as it proposes to amend the Canals Act 1986, which would see the right of Local Councils to have a meaningful input on the operation and Bye laws regarding the Canals to allow dialogue with Dublin City Council, the Association of Irish Local Government and the Inland Waterways Association of Ireland in relation to same”.
Some further information: The Heritage Bill 2016 is due to be reintroduced to Seanad Éireann at 2pm Wednesday November 9th for Stage 3. Section 2 of this Bill proposes considerable amendments to the Canals Act 1986. The introduction of the Heritage Bill 2016 as drafted will create significant differences between the Canals and other Irish Navigations, the bill if passed will result in reduced usage of the canals and thus impact on the local community through the loss of revenue of the visiting boaters and canal users.

If this Bill passes there will be no opportunity through monthly Council meeting to discuss proposals and engage in consultation on Canals legislation and future Byelaws, as the proposed consultation period will last for just 21 days. Councillors will have no input into legislation that will not put user requirements, tourism development & your communities at the centre of the regulations.
IWAI have called for a consultation period of 90 days to safeguard against this eventuality. The precedent for this has already been established by Waterways Ireland, (the North South Body charged with managing our Inland Waterways), through the Public Consultation on their Corporate Plan in 2014.
In relation to the overall canal section of the bill, IWAI believes that it is a negative and imbalanced approach to introduce legislation that penalises 99% of waterways communities to address the problematic area of 1% (due to unlicensed boats, harbour hogging). These matters can be legislated for without effectively penalising the other less populated areas.

The October Cruise in Company (CIC) is fast approaching and the weather is
looking good. Not that it matters much as our Commodores Paddy & Patricia
McCormack have laid on a list of events that can be done both indoors and
outdoors and for all age groups. It’s lining up to be another memorable
IWAI Carrick weekend.

If you have never done the October C.I.C, well maybe this year is the one
to do it.

Fri 28th October 9.30pm Registration Bush Hotel

Sat 29th October Cruise to Leitrim Marina Hotel.

2pm Darts and Pool in Carty’s bar.

2pm Chair yoga followed by mask painting at hotel.

8pm Table Quiz followed by music and sing song.

Sun 30th 12.0 Gentle yoga in Hotel. (bring your own mat if you can but mats will be
available)

2pm Indoor or outdoor games, depending on weather.

7pm Dinner and prize giving, Masquerade fancy dress,followed by music in bar.

Mon 31st 11am Coffee and scones in bar, and the final farewell.

We would like to let the Hotel know possible numbers for dinner in advance
of event so if, at the moment, you plan to join the CiC it would be great
if you could let us know by emailing iwaicarrick@gmail.com or popping a
reply on our Facebook page.

*Date for your Diary: October 1st 2016 @ 6pm – Bowling Centre Carrick. The annual Boyle River versus Carrick Bowling Challenge. There is a small matter of pride at stake as Carrick aim to bring the trophy back to the Shannon. *